A day after Cuomo said it was "ridiculous" that state law demands public employees be given a full year's notice prior to the closure of facilities such as youth prisons, Paterson wants lawmakers to change the 2006 rule.

The precise proposal wasn't immediately available Tuesday, but Paterson sent lawmakers an agenda for Monday's special session that includes "Eliminating the notification required prior to the closure of State facilities."

Also on the list: a proposal to create a commission that would "evaluate and adjust" judicial salaries; approval of gubernatorial nominations; a survival plan for the bankrupt New York City OTB operation; and budget cuts to help close the estimated $315 million gap in the current fiscal year. (Other estimates put the deficit as high as $1 billion.)

The facilities closure plan may be one of the strongest indications yet that Paterson and Cuomo are communicating -- directly or otherwise -- and trying to achieve a smooth transition of power.

More Information

The one-year notice law, first reported earlier this fall in the Times Union, made headlines Monday when Cuomo toured the Tryon Residential Center, a youth prison in Johnstown. The boys' facility (there is a neighboring one for girls) has been empty since July, yet 30 state employees continue to work there, thanks to the required one-year notice. They will leave when the facility is fully mothballed in January.

Whether lawmakers will ditch the one-year notification law, which benefits members of the state's powerful public employees unions, remains to be seen. It could prove to be an early test of how some of Cuomo's sweeping reforms will play in the Legislature.

Cuomo's Tryon visit was one of several such stops at state facilities in recent weeks designed to stress the need to streamline and downsize government. Lawmakers, who are historically allied with public-sector unions, have usually moved in the opposite direction by adding ever more protections for public employees. Only recently has that changed with measures such as a less-generous pension plan for new public employees going forward.

It remained unclear how much would be accomplished during Monday's session, primarily due to the unsettled state of the Senate. Three races remain undecided.

While the chamber's Democrats technically retain until Jan. 1 the 32-vote majority needed to pass legislation, there's been widespread speculation that at least one member of their conference, Pedro Espada Jr., may not attend. The scandal-plagued Majority Leader was defeated in a September primary. His successor, Gustavo Rivera, was one a group of freshman senators at the Capitol on Tuesday for briefings and orientation.

Cognizant of his conference's potential weakness, Democratic Conference Leader John Sampson reached out to Republican Leader Dean Skelos, inviting him to meet Monday morning before the start of the session.

"We should be working across party lines to get results for New Yorkers," wrote Sampson.